{"schemaVersion":1,"research":true,"symbol":"qcom","name":"Qualcomm","topic":"moat","path":"/stock/qcom/moat","status":"published","version":3,"updatedAt":"2026-10-17T22:33:42.930Z","locked":false,"publicFairValue":false,"fairValue":null,"moat":{"verdict":"narrow","summary":"Qualcomm has a narrow moat supported primarily by cellular standard-essential patents and an established licensing business, with additional switching friction in automotive design-ins. Pricing power is mixed: higher chipset selling prices partially offset higher costs, while licensing revenue per unit benefited mainly from mix. Customer vertical integration, concentrated demand and weaker recent operating results limit confidence in broader durability. Diversification shows realized progress but does not establish a wide moat.","advantages":[{"mechanism":"intangible_assets","claim":"Cellular standard-essential patents provide a structural basis for licensing revenue across wireless devices. Nine-month fiscal 2026 QTL revenue increased despite weaker quarterly demand, supporting a current monetized advantage rather than merely a technology aspiration.","durability":"The disclosed portfolio covers multiple cellular generations, and continuing licensing revenue supports persistence. Patent remaining lives, renewal terms and future standards relevance are not supplied, preventing an exceptional durability assessment.","risks":"Royalty disputes and enforcement challenges can weaken monetization. Customer chip development threatens QCT sales but does not itself establish avoidance of QTL royalties. Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi are disclosed customer chip developers, not established competing patent licensors.","invalidation":"Material license invalidations or renegotiations that persistently reduce effective royalties, widespread successful royalty avoidance, or failure to maintain relevant patents in succeeding cellular standards would invalidate the advantage.","competitors":["Apple","Samsung","Xiaomi"],"evidenceIds":["e1","e2","e3"],"counterEvidenceIds":["e4","e5","e6","e7","e8"]},{"mechanism":"switching_costs","claim":"Automotive qualification requirements, long design-in periods and long product cycles create switching friction after adoption. Higher shipments from new vehicle launches show Qualcomm has products operating within this structure.","durability":"Potentially meaningful within adopted vehicle programs, with realized shipment growth supporting current participation. The passages do not quantify program duration, renewal rates or Qualcomm-specific replacement costs.","risks":"These barriers also burden Qualcomm when entering programs and are available to qualified rivals. Higher automotive revenue reflects both shipment growth and mix; it does not prove exclusive relationships or superior lifetime economics.","invalidation":"Repeated replacement in established vehicle programs, failure to meet qualification standards, or sustained shipment losses across new vehicle launches would undermine the claimed switching friction.","competitors":[],"evidenceIds":["e9","e10"],"counterEvidenceIds":["e11","e12"]}],"evidence":[{"id":"e1","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Business: QTL patent licensing","excerpt":"QTL Segment. QTL grants licenses or otherwise provides rights to use portions of our intellectual property portfolio, which, among other rights, includes certain patent rights essential to and/or useful in the manufacture, sale and/or use of certain wireless products, including, without limitation, products implementing LTE and/or OFDMA-based 5G standards and their derivatives."},{"id":"e2","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Business: worldwide cellular standard-essential patent licenses","excerpt":"We grant licenses or otherwise provide rights to use our cellular standard-essential patents (including 3G, 4G and 5G) for cellular devices on a worldwide basis."},{"id":"e3","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"MD&A: nine-month QCT drivers and QTL segment results","excerpt":"2025 The decrease in QCT revenues in the first nine months of fiscal 2026 was primarily due to: - lower handsets revenues, primarily due to lower chipset shipments to certain major OEMs (primarily driven by customers adjusting build plans to reduce their inventory levels as a result of the negative effects of recent memory supply constraints and related price increases) + higher automotive revenues, due to a $560 million increase in revenues per unit driven by favorable mix and higher average selling prices and $551 million in higher shipments primarily from new vehicle launches with our Snapdragon digital cockpit and ADAS/AD products + higher IoT revenues, primarily due to an increase in revenues per unit primarily driven by favorable mix QCT EBT as a percentage of revenues decreased in the first nine months of fiscal 2026 primarily due to: - higher operating expenses, primarily driven by higher research and development and selling, general and administrative expenses - lower gross margin, primarily driven by higher product cost, partially offset by higher average selling prices - lower revenues QTL Segment (in millions, except percentages) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 Change June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 Change Licensing revenues $ 1,278 $ 1,318 $ (40) $ 4,252 $ 4,172 $ 80 EBT 881 942 (61) 3,105 3,028 77 EBT as a % of revenues 69 % 71 % -2 points 73 % 73 % — Third quarter 2026 vs."},{"id":"e4","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Risk factors: license invalidity and enforceability","excerpt":"If some or all of our license agreements are declared invalid or unenforceable and/or we are required to renegotiate these license agreements, we may not receive, or may not be able to recognize, some or any licensing or royalty revenues under the impacted license agreements unless and until we enter into new license agreements; and even licensees whose license agreements are not impacted may demand to renegotiate their agreements or invoke the dispute resolution provision in their agreements, and we may not be able to recognize some or any revenues under such agreements."},{"id":"e5","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Risk factors: license renegotiation","excerpt":"The renegotiation of license agreements could result in terms that are less favorable to us than existing terms, or lead to arbitration or litigation to resolve the licensing terms, which could also be less favorable to us than existing terms, and each of which could take months or years."},{"id":"e6","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Revenue recognition: actual royalty avoidance and dispute practices","excerpt":"From time to time, companies initiate various strategies in an attempt to negotiate, renegotiate, reduce and/or eliminate their need to pay royalties to us for the use of our intellectual property, which may include disputing, underreporting, underpaying, not reporting and/or not paying royalties owed to us under their license agreements with us, or reporting to us in a manner that is not in compliance with their contractual obligations."},{"id":"e7","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Risk factors: named customers developing their own chips","excerpt":"Certain of our largest mobile handset customers (for example, Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi) develop their own integrated circuit products, which they have in the past utilized, and/or currently utilize, in certain of their devices."},{"id":"e8","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Risk factors: expected Apple modem substitution","excerpt":"In particular, we expect that Apple will increasingly use its own modem products, rather than our products, in its future devices, which will have a significant negative impact on our QCT revenues, results of operations and cash flows."},{"id":"e9","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Risk factors: automotive design-in and qualification barriers","excerpt":"For example, the automotive industry is subject to long design-in time frames, long product life cycles and a high degree of regulatory and safety requirements, necessitating suppliers to the industry to comply with stringent qualification processes, very low defect rates and high reliability standards, all of which results in significant barriers to entry and increased costs."},{"id":"e10","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"MD&A: quarterly shipments, selling prices and product costs","excerpt":"2025 The decrease in QCT revenues in the third quarter of fiscal 2026 was primarily due to: - lower handsets revenues, primarily due to lower chipset shipments to certain major OEMs (primarily driven by customers adjusting build plans to reduce their inventory levels as a result of the negative effects of recent memory supply constraints and related price increases) + higher automotive revenues, due to a $381 million increase in revenues per unit driven by favorable mix and higher average selling prices and $223 million in higher shipments primarily from new vehicle launches with our Snapdragon digital cockpit and advanced driver assistance and automated driving (ADAS/AD) products + higher IoT revenues, primarily due to an increase in revenues per unit primarily driven by favorable mix QCT EBT as a percentage of revenues decreased in the third quarter of fiscal 2026 primarily due to: - lower gross margin, primarily driven by higher product cost, partially offset by higher average selling prices - lower revenues 22 First nine months 2026 vs."},{"id":"e11","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Risk factors: product quality and regulatory qualification","excerpt":"If our products fail to perform to specifications, compete with the product quality of our competitors or meet quality or regulatory standards (including product safety and information security standards, which may differ by region, geography and industry, and which are particularly stringent in the automotive industry) or other standards (including sustainability or other ESG-related standards) of a particular industry or application, we may be unable to successfully expand our business in that industry or application, and our growth could be limited."},{"id":"e12","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Risk factors: semiconductor competitive dynamics","excerpt":"Competition in the semiconductor industry is affected by various factors that include, among others: OEM concentrations; vertical integration; competition in certain geographic regions; government intervention or support of national industries or competitors; geopolitical tensions, which may drive customer preference toward local suppliers; the ability to maintain product differentiation in light of evolving industry standards and speed of technological change (including the transition to smaller geometry process technologies, the demand for always on, always connected capabilities, the increasing use of AI and machine learning technologies and the need to run complex AI-based applications on devices); access to capacity in the supply chain; and value-added features that drive selling prices and consumer demand for new devices."},{"id":"e13","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Unaudited consolidated statements of operations","excerpt":"4 QUALCOMM Incorporated CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (In millions, except per share data) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 Revenues: Equipment and services $ 8,475 $ 8,893 $ 28,002 $ 28,193 Licensing 1,472 1,472 4,796 4,820 Total revenues 9,947 10,365 32,798 33,013 Costs and expenses: Cost of revenues 4,670 4,606 15,138 14,704 Research and development 2,607 2,226 7,523 6,672 Selling, general and administrative 976 771 2,738 2,200 Other 68 — 97 — Total costs and expenses 8,321 7,603 25,496 23,576 Operating income 1,626 2,762 7,302 9,437 Interest expense (178) (168) (519) (493) Investment and other income, net 1,014 358 1,458 748 Income before income taxes 2,462 2,952 8,241 9,692 Income tax (expense) benefit (460) (286) 4,136 (1,034) Net income $ 2,002 $ 2,666 $ 12,377 $ 8,658 Basic earnings per share $ 1.89 $ 2.44 $ 11.63 $ 7.85 Diluted earnings per share $ 1.87 $ 2.43 $ 11.53 $ 7.79 Shares used in per share calculations: Basic 1,057 1,092 1,064 1,102 Diluted 1,069 1,099 1,073 1,112 See accompanying notes."},{"id":"e14","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Unaudited consolidated statements of cash flows","excerpt":"6 QUALCOMM Incorporated CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (In millions) (Unaudited) Nine Months Ended June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 Operating Activities: Net income $ 12,377 $ 8,658 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization expense 1,202 1,231 Income tax payments in excess of income tax provision (5,550) (1,535) Share-based compensation expense 2,579 2,120 Net gains on marketable securities and other investments (933) (297) Impairment losses on other investments 61 93 Equity in net earnings of investees (149) (13) Other items (52) (10) Changes in assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable, net (264) 535 Inventories (1,798) 33 Other assets 777 361 Trade accounts payable 149 (220) Payroll, benefits and other liabilities 231 (943) Unearned revenues (225) 3 Net cash provided by operating activities 8,405 10,016 Investing Activities: Capital expenditures (1,578) (785) Purchases of debt and equity marketable securities (2,449) (3,785) Proceeds from sales and maturities of debt and equity marketable securities 3,896 4,892 Acquisitions and other investments, net of cash acquired (1,573) (711) Proceeds from other investments 26 53 Other items 30 7 Net cash used by investing activities (1,648) (329) Financing Activities: Proceeds from short-term debt 3,238 998 Repayment of short-term debt (2,743) (998) Repayment of debt of acquired company (174) — Proceeds from long-term debt — 1,487 Repayment of long-term debt — (1,365) Proceeds from issuance of common stock 223 201 Repurchases and retirements of common stock (6,806) (6,347) Dividends paid (2,868) (2,848) Payments of tax withholdings related to vesting of share-based awards (888) (878) Other items (28) (10) Net cash used by financing activities (10,046) (9,760) Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (21) (5) Net decrease in total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (3,310) (78) Total cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period (including $2,323 classified as restricted cash at September 28, 2025) 7,843 7,849 Total cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 4,533 $ 7,771 See accompanying notes."},{"id":"e15","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"MD&A: annual operating cash flows","excerpt":"2025 2024 Change Net cash provided by operating activities $ 14,012 $ 12,202 $ 1,810 Net cash used by investing activities (800) (3,623) 2,823 Net cash used by financing activities (13,196) (9,269) (3,927) Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities (including restricted cash)."},{"id":"e16","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"MD&A: repurchases, dividends, capital spending and financing uses","excerpt":"The net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities (including restricted cash) in fiscal 2025 was primarily due to $8.8 billion in payments to repurchase shares of our common stock, $3.8 billion in cash dividends paid, $1.4 billion repayment of unsecured fixed-rate notes that matured in May 2025, $1.2 billion in capital expenditures, $1.1 billion in payments of tax withholdings related to the vesting of share-based awards and $743 million in cash paid for acquisitions and other investments."},{"id":"e17","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"Notes: customer and licensee revenue concentration","excerpt":"Revenues from each customer/licensee that were 10% or greater of total revenues were as follows: Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 June 28, 2026 June 29, 2025 Customer/licensee (x) 23 % 18 % 24 % 20 % Customer/licensee (y) 20 21 20 21 Customer/licensee (z) * 13 * 13 *Less than 10% Other Income, Costs and Expenses."},{"id":"e18","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"MD&A: QTL quarterly revenue drivers","excerpt":"2025 The decrease in QTL licensing revenues in the third quarter of fiscal 2026 was primarily due to: - $67 million decrease in estimated sales of cellular products - $25 million in lower royalty revenues recognized related to devices sold in prior periods + $59 million increase in revenues per unit, which was primarily driven by favorable mix QTL EBT as a percentage of revenues decreased in the third quarter of fiscal 2026 primarily due to: - higher operating expenses, primarily driven by higher selling, general and administrative expenses - lower revenues First nine months 2026 vs."},{"id":"e19","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Business: discretionary negotiation of certain patent rights","excerpt":"While we offer license rights to patents that we do not have a duty or obligation to grant, those rights may be negotiated at our discretion."},{"id":"e20","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Revenue recognition: enforceable contracts and non-cancelable purchase orders","excerpt":"We account for a contract with a customer/licensee when it is legally enforceable, the parties are committed to perform their respective obligations, the rights of the parties regarding the goods and/or services to be transferred are identified, payment terms are identified, the contract has commercial substance and collectability of substantially all of the consideration is probable, which for product sales, is generally when a non-cancelable customer purchase order is executed and for licensing revenues, is generally upon execution of a license agreement."},{"id":"e21","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Executive compensation: PSU metrics and vesting","excerpt":"Performance stock units (PSUs) are based on three-year relative total stockholder return (RTSR) and Adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS) performance and have a three-year cliff vest."},{"id":"e22","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Executive compensation: negative absolute return payout cap","excerpt":"We further limit earned RTSR PSUs to no more than the target shares if absolute total stockholder return (TSR) is negative over the three-year performance period, regardless of the level of RTSR."},{"id":"e23","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Executive compensation: stock ownership requirements","excerpt":"Our CEO is required to own 10x his salary and our other executive officers are required to own 2x their respective salaries in our common stock."},{"id":"e24","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Appendix A: ACIP adjustments for disputed royalty revenue","excerpt":"​ A-2 ​ ​ ​ ​ 2026 PROXY STATEMENT ​ TABLE OF CONTENTS APPENDIX A: NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES 2025 ANNUAL CASH INCENTIVE PLAN (ACIP) Adjusted Revenues For purposes of determining adjusted revenues under the ACIP for fiscal 2025, GAAP revenues will be adjusted to exclude the impact of the following items: • Revenues from the QSI segment; ​ • The impact of any award, settlement, arbitration and/or judgment arising from a legal dispute or contract dispute to the extent the amount is (i) recorded to revenues for which each event individually equals or exceeds $25 million and (ii) is clearly attributable to one or more fiscal years ending before the beginning of the fiscal year; ​ • Contract disputes in excess of $50 million in the fiscal year (including but not limited to disputes resulting in litigation or arbitration) in which (i) a licensee withholds or fails to make royalty payments or disputes royalty payments paid, (ii) attributable revenue is not recorded in GAAP revenue for the fiscal year, (iii) such dispute is not resolved during the fiscal year, and (iv) projected revenue from such licensee was included in determining the Adjusted Revenue performance target, in which event revenue for the fiscal year will be adjusted to include the amount of revenue the licensee withholds, fails to pay or disputes, or to the extent that the licensee fails to report information sufficient to determine the actual impact on revenue of the withholding, failure to make royalty payments or dispute of payment amounts, such adjustment shall be the specific amount for such licensee that was used in the determination of the Adjusted Revenue target."},{"id":"e25","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Appendix A: adjusted operating income exclusions","excerpt":"​ Adjusted Operating Income For purposes of determining adjusted operating income under the ACIP for fiscal 2025, GAAP operating income will be adjusted to exclude the impact of the following items: • Operating Income from the QSI segment; ​ • Share-based compensation expense; ​ • Gains and losses driven by the revaluation of our Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan liabilities recognized in operating expenses; ​ • Acquisition-related items, which may include (i) recognition of the step-up of inventories to fair value; (ii) purchase accounting effects on property, plant and equipment for certain acquisitions; (iii) amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets; (iv) purchase accounting effects on acquired or assumed debt; (v) third-party acquisition and integration services costs; (vi) break-up fees; (vii) costs related to temporary debt facilities and letters of credit executed prior to the close an acquisition; (viii) expenses related to the termination of contracts that limit the use of acquired intellectual property; and (ix) other costs incurred in connection with acquisitions that are to be expensed upon the close of the acquisition under GAAP."},{"id":"e26","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Corporate governance: current independent Chair","excerpt":"​ Principally because our current Chair is an independent director, the Board has elected not to fill the role of Lead Independent Director at this time."},{"id":"e27","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Corporate governance: director independence","excerpt":"Amon, all of the members of the Board are independent directors within the meaning of NASDAQ Rule 5605."},{"id":"e28","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Executive compensation: repayment obligations","excerpt":"We require executive officers to repay to us earned amounts under our ACIP and PSUs if required by our clawback policy, applicable regulations or stock exchange rules."},{"id":"e29","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Notes: annual revenue history and geographic concentration","excerpt":"Revenues by country were as follows (in millions, except percentages): 2025 2024 2023 China (including Hong Kong) $ 20,340 46 % $ 17,826 46 % $ 13,386 37 % United States 10,515 24 9,686 25 10,503 29 South Korea 9,542 21 7,995 20 8,075 23 Other foreign 3,887 9 3,455 9 3,856 11 $ 44,284 100 % $ 38,962 100 % $ 35,820 100 % Note 9."},{"id":"e30","sourceId":"filing-3","location":"Annual meeting notice: proposed 2026 share reserve increase","excerpt":"​ ■ The approval of the Amended and Restated QUALCOMM Incorporated 2023 Long-Term Incentive Plan, including an increase in the share reserve by 24,000,000 shares."},{"id":"e31","sourceId":"filing-1","location":"Share-based compensation: approved March 2025 plan amendment","excerpt":"On March 18, 2025, our stockholders approved the Amended and Restated Qualcomm Incorporated 2023 Long-Term Incentive Plan (the 2023 Plan), including an increase in the share reserve by 23 million shares."},{"id":"e32","sourceId":"filing-2","location":"MD&A: inventory and operating cash flow pressure","excerpt":"Net changes in our operating assets and liabilities for the first nine months of fiscal 2026 negatively impacted our operating cash flows primarily driven by an increase in inventory reflecting certain customer demand impacts from memory supply constraints, partially offset by a decrease in other assets and increase in payroll, benefits and other liabilities."}],"changes":["No comparable previous version."],"limitations":["Assessment uses only supplied issuer passages. The sources retain dateKind filed: November 5, 2025; January 22, 2026; and July 29, 2026. Filing dates are not retrieval dates, and operating periods precede them.","Named competitive coverage is limited to customer chip developers Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi. Direct merchant semiconductor rivals, competing patent licensors and automotive competitors are not identified in the relevant passages.","Patent expiry schedules, royalty rates, contractual renewal histories, market shares and customer-level retention are absent. Automotive switching costs are inferred from disclosed industry requirements and realized shipments.","Higher revenue per unit partly reflects favorable mix. Licensing mix gains do not establish higher contractual royalty rates, and chipset price increases do not establish complete cost pass-through.","Governance and incentive arrangements are disclosed, but executive ownership balances, compliance with ownership guidelines and realized long-term incentive effectiveness are not established.","The January 2026 proposal to increase the equity reserve by 24 million shares is not evidence of approval. The March 2025 increase of 23 million shares is explicitly disclosed as approved.","Prospective Apple displacement and generic legal, competitive and qualification risks are distinguished from realized royalty disputes, inventory pressure and operating deterioration."],"qualityAssessments":[{"category":"moat","checks":[{"criterion":"structural_advantage","grade":3,"rationale":"Standard-essential patent rights have a demonstrated licensing revenue stream. Automotive qualification barriers add a narrower source of switching friction. These mechanisms, rather than margins alone, support the moat.","evidenceIds":["e1","e2","e3","e9","e10"]},{"criterion":"durability","grade":2,"rationale":"Licensing spans several cellular generations and remains economically active, but patent remaining lives and renewal economics are missing. Royalty disputes and expected customer chip substitution constrain confidence in company-wide persistence.","evidenceIds":["e2","e3","e6","e8"]},{"criterion":"customer_dependency","grade":2,"rationale":"Essential patent rights and automotive qualification processes support dependency. Customers also develop substitute chips, while two customers/licensees represented 44% of nine-month revenue. Dependency is therefore mutual and uneven.","evidenceIds":["e1","e7","e9","e17"]},{"criterion":"erosion_resilience","grade":2,"rationale":"Nine-month QTL revenue and EBT increased and automotive shipments grew, demonstrating some resilience. Lower handset shipments, lower QCT profitability and royalty avoidance practices show material limits.","evidenceIds":["e3","e6","e10","e13"]}]},{"category":"pricing_power","checks":[{"criterion":"realized_pricing","grade":2,"rationale":"Higher chipset average selling prices partially offset higher product costs, and automotive revenue per unit increased through both pricing and mix. QTL quarterly revenue-per-unit improvement was primarily mix-driven, leaving evidence of pricing power mixed.","evidenceIds":["e3","e10","e18"]},{"criterion":"retention","grade":2,"rationale":"Continued licensing revenue and automotive shipments provide indirect evidence of repeat demand and adoption. No renewal or retention rates are supplied; lower handset shipments and customer chip development weaken the overall assessment.","evidenceIds":["e3","e7","e9","e10"]},{"criterion":"margin_resilience","grade":2,"rationale":"QTL maintained its nine-month EBT margin at 73%, but quarterly margin declined and QCT profitability weakened as higher prices only partly offset product costs. Consolidated operating income also fell. Resilience differs substantially by segment.","evidenceIds":["e3","e10","e13"]},{"criterion":"contractual_freedom","grade":2,"rationale":"Certain non-obligatory patent rights can be negotiated at Qualcomm's discretion, and executed contracts support payment enforceability. This is limited freedom: it does not establish unilateral control over standard-essential royalty terms, and actual disputes and potentially adverse renegotiations constrain collection.","evidenceIds":["e19","e20","e5","e6"]}]},{"category":"strong_management","checks":[{"criterion":"capital_discipline","grade":2,"rationale":"Fiscal 2025 operating cash flow of $14.0 billion supported substantial capital returns. In the first nine months of fiscal 2026, operating cash flow fell to $8.4 billion while repurchases and dividends totaled about $9.7 billion, before $1.6 billion of capital spending and $1.6 billion of acquisitions and investments. Inventory absorbed cash and cash balances declined. This supports a mixed assessment; repurchase value creation and acquisition returns are unproven.","evidenceIds":["e14","e15","e16","e32"]},{"criterion":"incentive_alignment","grade":2,"rationale":"Three-year performance awards, return-based payout limits and executive ownership requirements support alignment. Adjusted compensation metrics exclude share-based compensation and can credit qualifying disputed royalties absent from GAAP revenue, weakening accountability to realized economics. Actual executive ownership compliance is not supplied.","evidenceIds":["e21","e22","e23","e24","e25"]},{"criterion":"execution","grade":2,"rationale":"Annual revenue increased from $39.0 billion to $44.3 billion in fiscal 2025, and subsequent automotive growth included shipments from new vehicle launches. More recent consolidated revenue, operating income and operating cash flow declined. Execution is assessed from these operating outcomes, with diversification progress insufficient to offset all handset and cost pressures.","evidenceIds":["e29","e3","e13","e14"]},{"criterion":"governance","grade":3,"rationale":"An independent Chair, disclosed independence of directors other than the CEO, executive incentive repayment obligations and an explicitly approved 2025 equity-plan amendment demonstrate substantive oversight structures. Their effectiveness in contested decisions is not established, and the separate 2026 reserve proposal is not treated as adopted.","evidenceIds":["e26","e27","e28","e30","e31"]}]}],"qualityPolicy":"quality-scores-2","basisHash":"9dbaac3325e48f0b1010dec5b2b75572a498ae41b8bd8c2de7883b405c04c476","updatedAt":"2026-10-17T22:33:42.930Z","sources":[{"id":"filing-1","url":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/804328/000080432825000085/qcom-20250928.htm","publishedAt":"2025-11-05","sha256":"c0c100724441ce5887c75907acb4d566b54865217011d4f6f02434095278dc9a","dateKind":"filed"},{"id":"filing-2","url":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/804328/000080432826000086/qcom-20260628.htm","publishedAt":"2026-07-29","sha256":"c3dc1332f11987645cd6e07c34cc878068746c30fcaf48e2f907288b3c3c54d1","dateKind":"filed"},{"id":"filing-3","url":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/804328/000110465926005781/tm2528704-1_def14a.htm","publishedAt":"2026-01-22","sha256":"431617ec95e48c4b15fa5410a8055e50df6356fc926ba98f1caeaf3ec3d9d0fd","dateKind":"filed"}],"model":"gpt-6.1-sol","providerId":"codex:3903ab0a96295ff6ff033a648c5f6666dd5dc6b0297f1cc58182c8322e89124b","usage":{"input_tokens":53573,"cached_input_tokens":20992,"cache_write_input_tokens":0,"output_tokens":3782,"reasoning_output_tokens":89}},"signals":[{"period":"2021","end":"2021-09-26","values":{"gross_margin":57.51057617827564,"operating_margin":29.16343919442293,"roic":51.172152942558746,"fcf_margin":25.764166120479054,"sbc_revenue":4.954418161234583},"issues":{"pb":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","software_capex":"Separately disclosed software and intangible investment is unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roe":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roic_wacc":"Enter a WACC assumption from 0 to 100%."}},{"period":"2022","end":"2022-09-25","values":{"gross_margin":57.839366515837106,"operating_margin":35.88235294117647,"roic":55.70824789850008,"fcf_margin":15.461538461538463,"sbc_revenue":4.595022624434389},"issues":{"pfcf_growth":"TTM FCF per diluted share growth is zero or negative; a growth-adjusted multiple requires positive growth.","pb":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","software_capex":"Separately disclosed software and intangible investment is unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roe":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roic_wacc":"Enter a WACC assumption from 0 to 100%."}},{"period":"2023","end":"2023-09-24","values":{"gross_margin":55.69793411501954,"operating_margin":21.742043551088777,"roic":25.92084306816768,"fcf_margin":27.495812395309883,"sbc_revenue":6.934673366834171},"issues":{"peg":"TTM earnings per diluted share growth is zero or negative; a growth-adjusted multiple requires positive growth.","pb":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","software_capex":"Separately disclosed software and intangible investment is unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roiic":"Invested capital did not increase versus the prior year. ROIIC requires a positive increase.","roe":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roic_wacc":"Enter a WACC assumption from 0 to 100%."}},{"period":"2024","end":"2024-09-29","values":{"gross_margin":56.21374672758071,"operating_margin":25.848262409527234,"roic":31.989330100492015,"fcf_margin":28.645860068784966,"sbc_revenue":6.796365689646322},"issues":{"pb":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","software_capex":"Separately disclosed software and intangible investment is unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roe":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roic_wacc":"Enter a WACC assumption from 0 to 100%."}},{"period":"2025","end":"2025-09-28","values":{"gross_margin":55.428597236022036,"operating_margin":27.899467076144884,"roic":17.012484100152935,"fcf_margin":28.9495077228796,"sbc_revenue":6.284436816909042},"issues":{"peg":"TTM earnings per diluted share growth is zero or negative; a growth-adjusted multiple requires positive growth.","pb":"The reported inputs required for this metric are unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","software_capex":"Separately disclosed software and intangible investment is unavailable in the extracted statements for this period.","roiic":"Invested capital did not increase versus the prior year. 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